Quote:
Originally Posted by saillias
I don't think Backlund needed any more AHL time than he got. Maybe expectations for him were just too high. He's become a good player. If he could get faceoffs to 50%, we could start calling him valuable.
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You may be 100% right, or you may be wrong. I remember Iginla talking about his first season in Calgary - how much more difficult it was to score in the NHL. He started thinking that perhaps his ceiling in the NHL was that of a 3rd line grinder. Maybe a 20 goal guy (something like that anyways - felt that maybe his offence from junior wouldn't translate too well). Well, we all know how that story unfolded.
Looking at Backlund, was he a product of being rushed, or unlike Iginla, just never had that potential. You see the flashes of offensive talent, and he has a very, very hard slapper. He is quick and intelligent.
I don't know the answer. I do think it wouldn't have hurt Backlund's development in the slightest going to the AHL for a couple of seasons. If he was rushed, then it has hurt Backlund. That is how I kind of see things. It won't hurt Baertschi going down there, as it will give him premium minutes, and Ward seems to like using guys in different situations so he can expose them to new things.
While some people in this thread don't like the move, I haven't seen anything thus far about potentially hurting his development either. Stronger risk of hurting his development in rushing a player that is not ready, than letting a prospect develop too long.